just a few hours to go. the hoarse voices of the candidates making their final pitches as they hopscotch between the most crucial swing states. the storm after the storm. a developing nor'easter with 60-mile-per-hour wind gusts, snow, rain, and just look at where it's headed. all that, as power is being restored as quickly as possible. gas shortages are lessening and rebuilding efforts are barely getting off the ground. monday, november 5th, 2012. r monday, november 5th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television a very good morning to you. i'm veronica de la cruz. election day is less than 24 hours away, and the latest polls show this is still a neck and neck race. according to the final preelection nbc news "wall

street journal" possible, 48% of likely voters support president obama, while a close 47% favor governor mitt romney. the president holds the same narrow 48% to 47% edge among likely voters in virginia. mr. obama holds a slightly wider lead in florida with support from 49% of likely voters compared to romney's 47. and in all important ohio, our poll shows president obama holds a six-point lead over his republican rival with 51% to romney's 45. nbc's tracie potts is in cincinnati, ohio, with the candidates' final frantic day of campaigning. good morning to you. >> reporter: hi, veronica. good morning from cincinnati where voters are well aware of how important their vote is. so much so, that we saw them standing outside in extremely long lines, willing to wait hours just to get a ballot. in cincinnati, the only line for early voting sunday wrapped around a whole city block.

we found tony wilson in at the back of the line. >> you have to do your part. >> reporter: hamilton county election official tells us they've processed 22,000 voters, almost as many as 2008. >> as long as they're in line by the cut-off time, they get a chance to vote. >> reporter: sarah drove home five hours just to vote. >> we're a swing state. it's important to get all the democratic votes that we can. ♪ >> reporter: across town, president obama continued his star-studded tour across ohio. >> governor romney has been having a tough time here in ohio because everybody knows he was against saving the auto industry. you don't scare people just to scare up votes. >> reporter: our latest nbc-"wall street journal" poll shows this race is a dead heat, 48-47 barely favoring the president. reuters reports similar margins in florida, virginia, colorado and ohio.

governor romney is now focusing on pennsylvania, a state that hasn't voted republican in 20 years. >> i can't wait for us to get started. he's hoping we settle. americans don't settle. we listen to the voice that says we can do better. >> reporter: increasingly we are seeing all roads to this election lead through ohio. it's one of the reasons, veronica, we're seeing both candidates making stops again in the buckeye state. they'll be up in columbus later today. >> tracie potts in cincinnati, stay warm out there. there was anger and frustration in florida where voters lined up to cast absentee ballots after being cut off from the early voting deadline on saturday. investigative correspondent michael itzkoff explains what happened there and other potential election problems. >> reporter: frustrated voters outside the miami-dade election

office, they had come after the county announced it would open its doors to provide and accept absentee ballots. but so many voters showed up that election officials were overwhelmed. they shut their doors, then decided to reopen. the democratic party sued to extend early voting after some voters were stuck onlines for hours. >> i'm a little bit upset. you have, like, what, five hours now. >> reporter: election officials are bracing for lots of potential voting problems on tuesday, especially in the key battleground states. in ohio, experts say because of confusion over new absentee ballot rules, more than 200,000 voters may be forced to cast provisional ballots that won't be counted until ten days after election day. >> there's a realistic chance that we will not know which candidate won the presidential election in ohio. >> reporter: another big wildcard, citizen groups like true the vote says it has trained nearly a million poll watchers to be on the lookout for voter fraud.

liberal activist groups say they're deploying their own poll watchers to prevent intimidation. >> we will also be watching the poll watchers to make sure that they are not acting as bullies. >> reporter: meanwhile hurricane sandy's devastation has swamped election plans in the northeast. new jersey officials faced with flooded polling stations and power outages are besieged. >> obviously the timing of the storm was horrible for us. it's affecting people's ability to get to the polls. >> i have no idea where we'll be able to vote. >> reporter: this weekend the state announced it will let voters displaced by sandy e-mail or fax their ballots in. military trucks may be deployed as backup polling stations. the world will be closely watching our presidential election tomorrow. there is intense interest in the man america chooses and how his policies will affect other nations. nbc's michelle kosinski is live in london this morning with the latest. good morning, michelle.

>> reporter: hi, veronica. it's been fascinating to watch their fascination. people around the world are paying attention to virtually every detail of this election. analysts here say there's no equivalent in the u.s., that americans never have that feeling of looking up to another power as a source of stability and growth for themselves. we had our crews span out to seven countries in europe and asia where people said they absolutely are looking at this election at this time as hugely important to their own futures and concerns. those concerns, of course, varied by region. in countries in transition, egypt and afghanistan, people were concerned about continuity and aid. they were worried about what forging new relationships with a new administration would mean exactly to them. in europe, all about the economy. in fact, a poll was done that showed 75% of europeans would vote for obama. 92% of germans. when you look at a place like,

say, israel, if the election happened here, the landslide would be romney's. he's gained enormous support there after he visited and has been vocally supportive of potential israeli action against iran's nuclear facilities. >> michelle, thank you. we want to let you know right here, brian williams and our entire political team will be with you every step of the way on election night. our coverage begins at 7:00, 6:00 central tomorrow night. it's time for a look at the weather and the nor'easter headed our way. bill karins is live for us down in democracy plaza. not a bad gig. good morning, bill. >> good morning, veronica. the sun is coming up on the east coast. this will be the scene for nbc news, the place to be and the place to watch as we go throughout tuesday night. this place will be mobbed, democracy plaza. the ice rink in the bottom, it's actually a map of the united states. lit be filled with red or blue depending on who wins what states as they're called on nbc

news. we have issues with the forecast, too. not so much for election day. we are watching the storm system diving down through the middle of the country. it will impact the southeast throughout election day. today's forecast, 93 in l.a. today. tall cold air where people are recovering from sandy, a very cold period after the storm. now this next storm is on its heels. your election day forecast, as far as turnout in the swing states, i don't expect a lot of impact out there, a wintery mix in wisconsin. that's not going to cause any problems. as we go through our nor'easter on wednesday night into thursday, we're really going to feel for the people that are still trying to recover from sandy. 2 million people still don't have power. now we'll have 60-mile-per-hour winds. in the mountains they'll get snow. additional power outages and also the cleanup will be delayed by at least one or two days. unbelievable. another big storm

portland and seattle. a better chance of showers in the northwest tomorrow. veronica, as is typically the case, when the eastern portion of the country is very cold, the west is warm and beautiful. that's the case right now. >> it is gorgeous out there on the west coast. thanks, bill. bill is out there at democracy plaza taking over the iconic rockefeller plaza for this year's presidential election. it is interactive, state of the art and also the place to watch the electoral votes be counted for president of the united states. you check it out online, ton web or if you're here in the big apple in new york city, come down to democracy plaza in rockefeller center coming up. major updates on the recovery efforts for those in hurricane sandy's path, plus one of the most accurate predictors of presidential politics dating back to 1900, it has precisely picked the winner over 89% of

the time. you're watching "early today."

at least 111 people now confirmed dead in the wake of hurricane sandy. more than 650,000 people got their power back in the last 24 hours. at least 1.3 million customers remain in the dark. new york governor andrew cuomo says the fuel shortage that's led to long lines could go on for days, and he warned those taking mass transit this morning can expect a lot more company as people find other ways to go to work and students return to school. in new jersey, the odd-even licensing plate rationing order remains in effect. many banks who waive fees say they'll extend those breaks until wednesday, and a massive crane dangling over a new york city high-rise since last monday has now been secured. and that means, people living and working near the site will finally be allowed to return.

viewers of our nbc universal telethon special hurricane sandy coming together donated nearly $23 million to the american red cross. it was the highest number of donations made by phone, text, and online to the red cross in five years. if you'd like to make a donation or find out more information, you can also head to the web. check out nbcnews.com. more than a thousand runners who lost out on their chance to run in this year's new york city marathon joined together in a different kind of race on sunday, to help those hardest hit by sandy. they traveled on the same ferry that would have taken them to staten island to run in the marathon, delivering desperately needed supplies like water, toilet paper and ready-to-eat meals. until we know the outcome of the presidential election, there could be a lot of sitting on the sidelines on wall street. still earning season marches on. big companies like news corp., jc penney and walt disney

release their quarterlies this week. back in the states, the national average for a gallon of regular dropped nearly 22 cents in the past two weeks to an average of $3.55 a gallon. anheuser-bush converted one of its lines in its georgia plan to can water instead of beer to be shipped to sandy's victims. in the meantime, pepsi co. and walmart stepped up to deliver supplies in the wake of last week's super storm. from sports to astrology to 7-eleven coffee drinkers, everyone has their favorite election prediction method. here is one based on the stock market. one investment researcher says the direction of stock prices two months prior to the election has accurately pre digited the winner 89.3% of the time since 1900. markets were up in september, but down for october. a bionic climber and an iconic african-american. plus another presidential predictor, a win or loss by the

washington redskins on their final game before election day has accurately predicted the presidency in 17 of the past 18 elections. we'll have details next. while the east coast is getting ready for another nor'easter, the west coast continues to enjoy beautiful weather. the exception? a little bit in the northwest. details are coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back.

here are some stories making news this morning. a report is expected this week on what caused the crash of the atlanta police helicopter saturday night, killing two officer. the chopper was searching for a runaway boy when it hit a power line pole and crashed to the street. the accidental death of a 2-year-old boy at the pittsburgh zoo yesterday was horrific. he died when he fell 11 feet into an exhibit and was mauled by wild dogs. milt campbell has died at the age of 78. he won the gold medal in the ten-event competition in melbourne, australia. a 31-year-old amputee climbed flights for charity at chicago's willis tower, the toll eflt building in the united states. zack votter was testing an experimental bionic leg controlled by his mind.

now to sports. atlanta is still the only undefeated team in the nfl. the falcons scored a fourth quarter touchdown. later kicked a field goal and held off the dallas cowboys to wrap up their eighth win, 19-13. colts quarterback andrew luck set an nfl rookie record of 433 yards passing with two touchdowns as indianapolis beat miami 23-20. and the washington redskins lost their last home game before the election to the carolina panthers 21-13. the so-called redskins rule. it might mean that mitt romney will be elected president. the redskins loss prediction has been correct 17 out of 18 times. in college football, alabama held on to the top spot in the bcs standings after pulling out a win over lsu. kansas state is number two followed by oregon, notre dame, and georgia. just ahead, your election day weather forecast, and please share those photos you've taken of your election experience. you use #msnbc2012 and we might

just use them online or on air.

welcome back to "early today" on this monday morning. i'm live in democracy plaza. as far as the forecast goes, it will be quiet in many areas of the west. early morning fog in the northwest. temperatures still above average. many spots from vegas to los angeles to phoenix, even

albuquerque. boise is 70 this time of year. we'll watch a weak system move into the northwest, light rain in the higher elevations. still very mild everywhere else. still feeling like the beginning of fall more than the middle, veronica. compared to the east coast, it looks like no problems voting in the west at all. now for some entertainment news. "wreck-it ralph" took the first weekend of the holiday box office season with a $49 million debut. actor john cusack has announced his production company is going to start shooting a film next year based on the life of outspoken conservative rush limbaugh. take a look at this rendition of my your michael bloomberg and his enthusiastic sign language interpreter. >> i'd also like to thank my staff with the special thanks to my sign language translator lydia, who brought some pizazz to what would otherwise have been a dour occasion. thank you, lydia, for your pizazz.

i turn it over now to new jersey governor chris christie. >> hello. hello, i'm governor chris christie. this is my interpreter roxie. things are bad, okay? but we're new jersey, we're going to be fine. we don't get sad in new jersey, we're going to be fine. we don't get sad in new jersey, we get even. so sleep with one eye open, sandy! >> i'm veronica de la cruz. this is just your first stop today on your nbc station.

occupy protesters in portland, oregon, are saying that police using pepper spray during a rally on saturday was excessive and violent. several hundred people marched and officer reportedly pepper sprayed about 20 of them. no injuries were reported. the coalition of protesters didn't have a permit. it was the final voyage for the world's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier. after more than 50 years of service, the "uss enterprise" pulled into its home port in norfolk, virginia, to the cheers of thousands of onlookers. the big e, as it's called, is the navy's second oldest ship after the uss constitution. the ship will officially be decommissioned on september 1st. the fur was flying on washington, d.c.'s national mall. hundreds of people turned out for the million puppet march in

our nation's capital, homemade puppets and signs. the march is in response to mitt romney saying he would cut government funding to pbs, the longtime broadcaster of "sesame street." just in case you're wondering, no puppets were armed during the mr. all right, bill, think quick. name your favorite puppet. >> oscar the grouch was my favorite as a little kid. >> you didn't like animal? >> yeah, but definitely oscar. >> okay. i think we have to give it to big bird, though. it is time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day right here on nbc. the presidential candidates will make the most of their final day on the campaign trail. president obama kicks off his day in wisconsin and then heads to ohio, wrapping up in iowa, the state where his 2008 campaign began. in the meantime, vice president biden will spend the day in virginia. republican presidential hopeful mitt romney has rallies planned in florida, ohio, virginia, and new hampshire, and vp nominee paul ryan will hit five states today, nevada, colorado, iowa, ohio, and wisconsin.

and finally, it is halloween in new jersey. governor christie postponed last week's celebrations until today as a result of sandy. so there you go. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. tonight, be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." here's a look at what's coming up later on the "today" show. a look at the first lady of fashion and the style of the candidates' wives. and coach of "the voice" christina aguilera dishes on this season's standout contestants. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports, and much more. i'm veronica de la cruz. thank you so much for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a terrific monday.